Formula One’s international court of appeal met yesterday to decide the legality of the Brawn GP car that took Jenson Button to victory in the first two races of the season.
Champions Ferrari, Red Bull, Renault and BMW-Sauber have appealed against stewards’ decisions in Australia and Malaysia that the rear diffusers used by Brawn, Toyota and Williams were legal.
A verdict is not due until this , by which time the teams will already be in Shanghai preparing for Sunday’s third round of the season in China.
If the appeal is upheld, the championship could be thrown into turmoil with the court having the power in the most extreme scenario to overturn the results and strip Button of his wins.
FIA officials held closed-door hearings at their Paris headquarters about the rear diffusers used by Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams, with a ruling expected early Wednesday. Ferrari, Renault, Red Bull and BMW Sauber confronted their rivals in front of five judges representing the International Court of Appeal.
The meeting took place in a confrontational atmosphere as Ferrari’s legal representative Nigel Tozzi, referring to Brawn GP boss Ross Brawn, claimed that “only a person of supreme arrogance would think he is right when so many of his esteemed colleagues would disagree,” according to the British news agency Press Association.
Should the FIA confirm the legality of the diffuser, Ferrari, Renault, Red Bull Racing and BMW Sauber would probably be forced to redesign their cars and try to close the gap on Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams.
Renault’s legal representative, Andrew Ford, joined Tozzi in his claim, saying that the FIA and Whiting had last season ruled illegal a design by the French team similar to that currently being used by Toyota.
“It is not that Renault missed the boat, as Brawn have pointed out, it is because the FIA said it was illegal,” Ford said. “It was at that point the diffuser was abandoned.”
Nigel Tozzi QC, Ferrari’s legal representative, used his 90-minute opening remarks to launch a stinging attack on Brawn, saying: “Only a person of supreme arrogance would think he is right when so many of his esteemed colleagues would disagree.”
The diffuser is a part attached to the rear of the car to increase aerodynamic performance.
It is argued that Brawn, Williams and Toyota have created a ‘double-decker’ diffuser with two apertures to increase airflow. Ferrari say that this is illegal.
“Anyone with a command of English will tell you it is a hole, so do not let someone attempting to be clever with words defeat the express purpose of the rules,” Tozzi added.
The 2009 regulations restrict the maximum height of the diffuser’s central section to 175mm.
But by exploiting regulations that allow extra bodywork within a 150mm zone in the centre of the car, Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams have cleverly shaped their cars’ rear crash structure so that it effectively extends the diffuser’s central section.
The three teams who have taken this route are adamant that they have observed the letter of the rules, and FIA president Max Mosley has conceded that they have been “clever” in exploiting a grey area.
But rival teams believe their interpretation flouts the spirit of the regulations, with Renault boss Flavio Briatore claiming they had simply drawn up their own rule book.
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